Remember
by Lady Addiction
Summary: Before Sho leaves for Germany, Mizuno has one last conversation with him. Vol 24 spoilers.


**REMEMBER**  
By Lady Addiction

_DISCLAIMER: Whistle! doesn't belong to me. 'Nuff said._

FANDOM: Whistle  
CHARACTER: Mizuno, Kazamatsuri  
WARNINGS: Spoilers for manga vol. 24, OOC?, run-on sentences?

CHALLENGE RESPONSE: For **_tempsmort_**_'s "Goodbye" and "Rude Awakenings" and _**_aishuu_**_'s last challenges at that comm. _**_aishuu_**_, I know you like Whistle! so I hope you enjoy this fic! Unfortunately, I didn't meet the time limit...--;;_

SUMMARY: Mizuno has one last talk with Kazamatsuri.

WWWW

Kazamatsuri Sho was sleeping fitfully, caught in a nightmare where he was in a gruesome battlefield lying helpless with an amputated leg, while his friends in samurai armour were dying all around him. Suddenly there was a loud explosion and the boy jerked awake, mouth open in an unvoiced scream.

Trembling uncontrollably, he fell back onto his rumpled bed, his shivering form clammy with cold sweat. He breathed raggedly, dragging his forearm over his face and finding it wet with tears. His left knee ached, the stitches feeling tight and painful.

There was a sharp, rapping sound and Sho started violently. He wiped his face and turned over, realizing someone was knocking on his door. He stared bemusedly at the clock; it was ten at night. Who would be knocking at this hour? Shivers ran down his spine as he remembered the bloody images from his nightmare.

"Sho? Sho, are you awake? Mizuno's here to see you," his older brother said through the door.

"Just a minute," he called out, relieved that it wasn't his dreams come to life. Sho crawled out of bed, exchanging his sweaty pyjamas for a clean tracksuit. He ran his fingers over his hair, trying to rearrange his bed-head into something presentable.

His older brother, Kou, was still in a rumpled navy suit, looking as if he had just come back from work. It would appear that Kou-nii would be sleeping on the plane. "Kou-nii, why are you still up?"

His older brother grimaced. "Just had to do some last minute things. Now go and talk to Mizuno-kun. Remember, our flight leaves at 7:30, so we need to leave for the airport by around 6:00."

"Don't worry, Kou-nii. We'll be back by then." He padded off to the door. Mizuno Tatsuya was standing at the open doorway, dressed in a pair of jeans and a grey sweater.

"Sorry about the late hour, Kazamatsuri," Mizuno said, looking apologetic and concerned, "but I haven't been able to see you lately and was wondering if we could have a talk before…"

Sho suddenly realized what this was about. He was leaving for Germany tomorrow to live at one of the more prestigious sports rehabilitation centres. In fact, both him and Kou were leaving very early in the morning, which meant this would be the last time Sho would see Mizuno for the next two or three years.

"Ah, of course, Mizuno-kun. Why don't we go for a walk?"

WWWW

One of the things the small forward disliked about his knee injury was that it caused his friends to act rather awkwardly. They were often over-solicitous, always asking him if he was doing fine, if he needed help, if there was anything they can do for him. Sho hadn't realized how much of his friendships revolved around soccer until he noticed how bland and empty his conversation with his friends at Sakura Jousui and at the Tokyo Senbatsu team were with their careful avoidance of a sensitive topic. Soccer wasn't a sensitive topic to Sho---his knee was---unfortunately, his comrades couldn't shake off this preconceived notion regardless of what he did.

Sho missed being able to talk freely with Mizuno-kun. So many of their teammates and classmates thought the other boy was too cold and selfish, but Sho didn't see that in Mizuno-kun at all. Mizuno-kun always watched his teammates so that no one had an accident during practice, he paid attention to the concerns and complaints raised by the Sakura Jousui club members, and he was always willing to practice with Sho. Besides, part of why Mizuno-kun was such an excellent midfielder was because he became a stronghold of trust for his team and Sho had never seen Mizuno-kun betray that trust. No, ever since the midfielder had accepted him as a soccer player, Sho had always felt at ease and comfortable with his former team captain.

But that was, of course, before The Injury. Now, their conversation stuttered in and out like a guttering candle flame, and he had to put up with watching Mizuno self-consciously check his stride to match Sho's slightly limping one.

"So I heard that you'll be meeting with Tenjou over there," Mizuno said after an uncomfortable pause. They were walking by the canal where Sho had spent so many happy times practicing. The boy found himself looking at the familiar oden stand in the distance, and he sniffed appreciatively at the faint delicious smells emanating from it.

"Yes, I'm looking forward to seeing him! He and his sister have been getting along very well, and he's even offering to teach me German," Sho replied enthusiastically. "It's going to be fun! He was telling me that they have great festivals in Germany, and a lot of really good food as well." He smiled as he recalled how happy Tenjou-kun had been to hear he would be going to Germany, even if the trip was because of an injury.

"That sounds great," Mizuno said with a smile. Past the stretch of the mouth, Sho saw a familiar frustrated and angry expression in his eyes. He looked away; he had seen that in too many faces ever since the news came out. "My aunt had been there once and she really liked it. She says it's one of the most beautiful places she's been to."

"Really? That's ---" Sho tripped over an unseen obstacle and found himself rolling down the steep hill. He tried to cover his face as he descended, feeling twigs and rocks scratching against his exposed skin. Landing with a thud at the bottom, perilously close to the water's edge, he cried out in pain and clutched his knee. He seemed to have aggravated it during his accident for it was now violently red and it felt on fire. Tears of pain slipped past his guard as he waited for the agony to subside.

"Kazamatsuri! Hold on!" Mizuno had run down the hill after him. The brown-haired youth carefully helped him to a sitting position, gently straightening out the injured knee, and running hands all over him to brush off debris and check for anything more serious than bruises and scrapes.

Both could hear other people yelling. Sho turned tenderly to see the oden stand owner and a couple of his customers almost stumble down the hill after him. "I'm fine, Oyaa-san, really!"

"Like I believe that, Shou-bou! You, Mizuno-kun, right? I have a cold compress and a first-aid kit at the stand! He can probably use some water as well! Go!" The bulky older man kneeled beside Sho, scolding the boy for his carelessness. He took out a cloth from his apron and wiped it at Sho's face. Mizuno-kun had raced back up the incline.

A few minutes later, ignoring his protests, Sho was gently arranged on one of the tarp covers spread out under the bridge. Mizuno-kun had expertly bandaged all his scrapes and had handed Sho the cold compress to lower the swelling of his knee. Oyaa-san had sent one of his customers for plastic containers of steaming-hot oden and two water bottles. It had taken Sho several minutes to persuade the man that he and Mizuno-kun were both fine. They were finally left alone and an awkward silence fell. Sho reached out for one of the oden containers, his hands trembling slightly.

"You don't look like you re-injured it badly," Mizuno told him quietly, taking the compress from him and studying the knee, "it looks like you basically pulled the tight muscles around the stitch-scars. The compress should help with any swelling and it's probably best if we call---"

Sho put aside his oden. "Mizuno-kun, stop it," he said sharply. The other boy looked up, startled. "Stop it, alright. I'm not an invalid! I fell, it's no big deal!"

"It is a big deal! Your knee---"

"My knee is already badly injured and one fall doesn't change things a lot!" Sho retorted. His face felt hot, and there was a tight knot in chest. Suddenly, it was all too much. "I hate it, okay?! I hate the fact that you guys are trying so hard not to make me feel bad, but I already feel terrible and there's nothing anybody can do about it!" He blurted out, wanting to stop the words yet wanting to keep going all at the same time. "I hate the fact that I'm leaving just as I've become part of the team! I hate the fact that my body's so weak that one accident will stop me from playing soccer forever!"

Mizuno-kun just stared wide-eyed as that torrent of emotional bile was rained upon him. Sho felt tears blurring his vision and he turned away, already feeling ashamed by his outburst. He rubbed at his eyes with his sleeves.

"I hate it too," Mizuno-kun said suddenly, his voice low and fierce. Their eyes met and held. "I hate that you got injured. I hate that you're leaving. I hate that maybe you might not ever be able to play again. And I hate most of all that I might not be able to see you again!"

The other boy averted his eyes, fiddling with the compress. "You don't realize how much you've changed me, Kazamatsuri. Before I met you, I was bitter and angry at my parents for their divorce, furious at my dad for trying to make me into some kind of soccer genius, and even more furious at Sakura Jousui for having such a crap soccer team! But then you showed me what it meant to be part of the team, what it meant to be a good leader…" He looked right into Sho's eyes again. "…what it meant to be a friend."

"We've all been together for so long now, went through so many things, that I can't believe that here you are about to leave for a different country! Ever since that day, I'm always wondering if there's something I could have done differently, if I could have moved better or passed the ball to someone else – maybe then this wouldn't have happened!" Mizuno clenched his other fist on the grass, tearing the hapless plants up as tears splashed down his hand.

Sho stared, shocked. He had never considered that someone may have felt like that. He had never thought to blame anyone. "Mizuno-kun, it's not your fault! Really, it's not your fault and I don't want you to think I'm blaming you or Shige-san! If it's anyone's fault, it's mine for kicking the ball like that!"

"It's not your fault, Kazamatsuri! It's not! It's some freak accident!" Mizuno-kun wiped his eyes with his sleeve before chuckling. "This was the last thing I was expecting tonight. I just wanted to wish you goodbye and good luck, and this happened! If your knee gets worse---"

"Stop it, Mizuno-kun! You didn't trip me! I just wasn't watching where I was going!" Appalled, Sho tried to figure out a way to change the topic and saw the unopened container of oden. He seized it and shoved it at his friend. "Here, some hot food will do us both some good!"

Mizuno-kun stared first at the container then at Sho. His face broke out into a half-smile. "You never change, Kazamatsuri. Here you are, knee hurting and all, but you're still trying to make someone not feel bad."

Sho flushed in embarrassment. "Just eat, Mizuno-kun!"

They finished the oden quietly while the icebag slowly melted on top of Sho's knee and he began to shiver. After returning the empty container and bottles to Oyaa-san, the duo said their farewells. Oyaa-san insisted on giving "Shou-bou" a big hug and making him promise to send lots of letters.

"I'm going to miss you guys so much," Sho said, his voice breaking as they left the canal. Mizuno-kun was helping him limp back to the apartment. He blinked rapidly as to prevent embarrassing himself yet again in front of his former captain. "I don't want to go."

"None of us want you to go, Kazamatsuri, but we all want to be able to play soccer with you again," Mizuno-kun said after a thoughtful pause. "For that, we're all ready to say as many goodbyes as needed, until you come back whole and well."

"So it's not 'goodbye', but 'I'll see you later', huh?" Sho joked. Then he was caught by the intense stare his friend gave him.

"That's right," Mizuno-kun agreed softly. "It's never goodbye, only 'see you later'."

Sho's breath caught and he felt the tears roll down, but a warm, golden sensation filled him and his smile sparkled like the starlight overhead. "Yes, I'll see you, see you all later."

-FIN-


End file.
